Cloud computing with AWS
Amazon Web Services (AWS) is the world’s most comprehensive and broadly adopted cloud,
offering over 200 fully featured services from data centers globally. Millions of customers—
including the fastest-growing startups, largest enterprises, and leading government agencies—are
using AWS to lower costs, become more agile, and innovate faster.
Most functionality
AWS has significantly more services, and more features within those services, than any other
cloud provider–from infrastructure technologies like compute, storage, and databases–to
emerging technologies, such as machine learning and artificial intelligence, data lakes and
analytics, and Internet of Things. This makes it faster, easier, and more cost effective to move
your existing applications to the cloud and build nearly anything you can imagine.
AWS also has the deepest functionality within those services. For example, AWS offers the
widest variety of databases that are purpose-built for different types of applications so you can
choose the right tool for the job to get the best cost and performance.
Largest community of customers and partners
AWS has the largest and most dynamic community, with millions of active customers and tens
of thousands of partners globally. Customers across virtually every industry and of every size,
including startups, enterprises, and public sector organizations, are running every imaginable use
case on AWS. The AWS Partner Network (APN) includes thousands of systems integrators who
specialize in AWS services and tens of thousands of independent software vendors (ISVs) who
adapt their technology to work on AWS.
Most secure
AWS is architected to be the most flexible and secure cloud computing environment available
today. Our core infrastructure is built to satisfy the security requirements for the military, global
banks, and other high-sensitivity organizations. This is backed by a deep set of cloud security
tools, with over 300 security, compliance, and governance services and features, as well as
support for 143 security standards and compliance certifications.
Fastest pace of innovation
With AWS, you can leverage the latest technologies to experiment and innovate more quickly.
We are continually accelerating our pace of innovation to invent entirely new technologies you
can use to transform your business. For example, in 2014, AWS pioneered the serverless
computing space with the launch of AWS Lambda, which lets developers run their code without
provisioning or managing servers. And AWS built Amazon SageMaker, a fully managed
machine learning service that empowers everyday developers and scientists to use machine
learning–without any previous experience.
Most proven operational expertise
AWS has unmatched experience, maturity, reliability, security, and performance that you can
depend upon for your most important applications. For over 17 years, AWS has been delivering
cloud services to millions of customers around the world running a wide variety of use cases.
AWS has the most operational experience, at greater scale, of any cloud provider.
Global network of AWS Regions
AWS has the most extensive global cloud infrastructure. The AWS Region and Availability
Zone model has been recognized by Gartner as the recommended approach for running
enterprise applications that require high availability.
AWS Well-Architected
Learn, measure, and build using architectural best practices
AWS Well-Architected helps cloud architects build secure, high-performing, resilient, and
efficient infrastructure for a variety of applications and workloads. Built around six pillars—
operational excellence, security, reliability, performance efficiency, cost optimization, and
sustainability—AWS Well-Architected provides a consistent approach for customers and
partners to evaluate architectures and implement scalable designs.
The AWS Well-Architected Framework includes domain-specific lenses, hands-on labs, and the
AWS Well-Architected Tool. The AWS Well-Architected Tool, available at no cost in the AWS
Management Console, provides a mechanism for regularly evaluating workloads, identifying
high-risk issues, and recording improvements.
AWS also provides access to an ecosystem of hundreds of members in the AWS Well-
Architected Partner Program. Engage a partner in your area to help analyze and review your
applications.
Reliance Steel and Aluminum Uses AWS Well-Architected Framework to Build Better in the Cloud (4:02)
AWS Well-Architected and the Six Pillars
Framework Overview
The AWS Well-Architected Framework describes key concepts, design principles, and
architectural best practices for designing and running workloads in the cloud. By answering a
few foundational questions, learn how well your architecture aligns with cloud best practices and
gain guidance for making improvements.
Operational Excellence Pillar
The operational excellence pillar focuses on running and monitoring systems, and continually
improving processes and procedures. Key topics include automating changes, responding to
events, and defining standards to manage daily operations.
Security Pillar
The security pillar focuses on protecting information and systems. Key topics include
confidentiality and integrity of data, managing user permissions, and establishing controls to
detect security events.
Reliability Pillar
The reliability pillar focuses on workloads performing their intended functions and how to
recover quickly from failure to meet demands. Key topics include distributed system design,
recovery planning, and adapting to changing requirements.
Performance Efficiency Pillar
The performance efficiency pillar focuses on structured and streamlined allocation of IT and
computing resources. Key topics include selecting resource types and sizes optimized for
workload requirements, monitoring performance, and maintaining efficiency as business needs
evolve.
Cost Optimization Pillar
The cost optimization pillar focuses on avoiding unnecessary costs. Key topics include
understanding spending over time and controlling fund allocation, selecting resources of the right
type and quantity, and scaling to meet business needs without overspending.
Sustainability Pillar
The sustainability pillar focuses on minimizing the environmental impacts of running cloud
workloads. Key topics include a shared responsibility model for sustainability, understanding
impact, and maximizing utilization to minimize required resources and reduce downstream
impacts.
AWS Well-Architected Lenses
AWS Well-Architected Lenses extend the guidance offered by AWS Well-Architected to
specific industry and technology domains, such as machine learning (ML), data analytics,
serverless, high performance computing (HPC), IoT, SAP, streaming media, the games industry,
hybrid networking, and financial services. To fully evaluate workloads, use applicable lenses
together with the AWS Well-Architected Framework and its six pillars.
AWS Well-Architected Guidance
Unlike the Framework and Lenses, which are aligned with all six pillars of the Well-Architected
Framework, AWS Well-Architected Guidance focuses on a specific use case, technology, or
implementation scenario.
AWS Well-Architected Tool
Learn best practices and apply important design considerations
Why AWS Well-Architected Tool?
Available in the AWS Management Console, the AWS Well Architected Tool provides a trusted
framework for you to evaluate your cloud architecture and implement designs that will scale over
time.
Benefits of AWS Well-Architected Tool
Architectural guidance
Get access to best practices and an action plan to fine-tune your applications and workloads.
In-Workflow Best Practices
Extend AWS Well-Architected Tool for your architecture governance processes, applications, and
workflows through robust APIs.
Measure Improvements
Save point-in-time milestones, implement improvements, and track changes to measure progress.
Enhance collaboration
Tailor your review with custom lenses that you can share with up to 300 individual IAM users or across
your entire organization.
How it works
The AWS Well-Architected Tool is designed to help you review the state of your applications
and workloads against architectural best practices, identify opportunities for improvement, and
track progress over time.
Use cases
Workload sharing and collaboration
Provide shared visibility into high-risk issues (HRIs) identified in workloads, and streamline
collaboration with other workload reviewers.
Learn more about workload sharing
Tailor guidance with custom lenses
Combine your best practices with AWS WA best practices in a single location to gain insight
into your overall architectural health.
Get started with custom lenses
Realize sustainability goals
Use the AWS WA sustainability pillar during your workload reviews to learn best practices for
minimizing environmental impact.
Explore the sustainability pillar
Get started with AWS Well-Architected Tool
